This article is made up of three parts, each of which re-traces and discusses the life and sociological work of Pierre Bourdieu, who died in January of 2002. The first section discusses the French thinker's career, and seeks to relate each stage of his life with the ongoing development of his thought - from his primary schooling in the French interior to his international recognition, and including his studies in Philosophy in Paris and anthropological research in Algeria. The second section uses an interview to engage in a discussion of reflexive sociology, of "the logic of practice", and of other concepts that Bourdieu formulated for the study of social reality and to incite the discovery of new research agendas. The third section discusses the importance of the journal Actes de la recherche en sciences sociales which Bourdieu founded, meant to transcend the several boundaries of nationality and disciplines which circumscribe and limit scientific production.
Pierre Bourdieu; intellectual trajectory; reflexive sociology; the logics of practice; Actes de la recherche en sciences sociales